The top three teams in each division would make the playoffs and the final two spots would be wildcard berths from the remaining teams within their own conference.. Essentially eight east teams and six from the west would miss the playoffs each season.

Bob McKenzie tweeted how the outline of the schedule:

The western teams would play 29 games (likely 5 games v. 5 teams and 4 games v. 1 team), they'd play the other west division teams three times each (21 games) and they'd play every east team twice (32 games), once at home and once on the road.

The eastern conference would be as follows. They would play 30 games within their division (likely 4 games v. 5 teams and 5 games v. 2 teams), they'd play the other east division teams three times each (24 games) and they'd play the west teams twice (28 games), once at home and once on the road.

RECAP

I like this proposal. It would ensure that fans got to see every team at least twice. They say there would be less travel, and likely so, but due to the Oilers geographical location they'd still travel more than most teams.

This is just a proposal and I'm sure some will complain that it is easier to make the playoffs in the west, but if they want less travel this works best. Keep in mind the board of governors and the NHLPA haven't voted on this yet, but it seems likely we will see some sort of new divisional realignment and schedule next season.

QUICK HITS

Interesting how differently people react to a bad play. When Ryan Whitney got beat by Jaromir Jagr in OT, he was ripped apart. Last night, Jeff Petry made a major mistake by inexplicably skating behind the net after getting beat one-on-one by Patrick Sharp, and that led to Marian Hossa's OT winner. Petry got a bit of flack, but not close to the reaction Whitney received.

Some stats guys will tell you Corey Potter is playing well. I love stats, I really do, but if your stats suggest he is playing well, I think that is proof that no statistical data is completely accurate. Please tell me what you see that makes you believe Potter is making an impact in games. I just don't see it.

I'd play Theo Peckham v. Dallas on Thursday. I thought he played well his first game, and surprised me with how confident he was moving the puck.

I understand if Krueger wants to protect Nail Yakupov and doesn't play him in tight games, but at some point he has to make a statement to his forwards who continually refuse to shoot the puck when they are in good shooting lanes. It is becoming ridiculous how often the Oilers pass up great shots and then end up missing the pass or getting no shot. It needs to stop, and he might have to do some tough love and sit guys for a shift or two.

Nugent-Hopkins has 40 shots on net, but he's missed the net 22 times. With only one goal it is obvious he is pressing and trying to pick the corner, but he might just need to fire one at the pads and hope for a rebound.

Hall and Eberle have 61 shots on net, but they've only missed the net 14 and 18 times respectively. Gagner has 50 shots with 13 misses.

Do you think the Oilers miss Horcoff? Salary aside, they desperately need a veteran to win some faceoffs, play solid defensively and contribute offensively.

At some point one of the Oilers leaders is going to have to stand up and rattle some cages. You can't always expect the coach to do it. It is time one of them stated they need to be more accountable to one another. We keep seeing the same mistakes happening game after game.

The Bruins have only played 15 games. They will play 33 games in the next 61days, including 17 games from March 2nd to 31st. I'm curious to see how they hold up.

In the 1995 shortened season Peter Bondra led the NHL in goals with 34. Right now only Steven Stamkos is on pace to match that, which would be 59 in an 82-game season. John Tavares, Patrick Marleau, James Neal and Tomas Vanek are on pace for 32-33, which would be great totals over a full season, if they maintain it.

Jacub Voracek is off to a great start with 24 points in 21 games. Drafted one spot behind Sam Gagner he's put up similar numbers to Gagner the past four seasons, 38, 50, 46 and 49 point seasons with 18 goals being his career-high. This year he already has 8 goals and 24 points. Gagner is having his most productive season as well with 18 points in 18 games.

One of Canada's most versatile sports personalities. Jason hosts The Jason Gregor Show, weekdays from 2 to 6 p.m., on TSN 1260, and he writes a column every Monday in the Edmonton Journal. You can follow him on Twitter at twitter.com/JasonGregor

The thing with Petry vs. Whitney is Whitney was making a lot of noticeable mistakes up to that point. Plus Petry did score yesterday.

I didn't blame Whitney on that play though, getting undressed by one of the most skilled players to ever play the game isn't exactly something to cry about.

I agree on Potter, although he didn't look too bad last night. Our d as whole looked slow though last night. Chicago was able to expose them. Pretty much agree with everything else, although hard to shoot last night.

As a side, good work on the Rush. I haven't been able to make it out as I've been quite busy on weekends, but once they come back in April(late march?) I'll make time. Sounds like an exciting team.

"At some point one of the Oilers leaders is going to have to stand up and rattle some cages. You can't always expect the coach to do it. It is time one of them stated they need to be more accountable to one another. We keep seeing the same mistakes happening game after game. "

On the newest Oil Change, Smid (I believe) has a melt down when the Oilers lose the game with less than a minute left. He rages a bit and basically calls out his team on not playing team defense first.

I wonder how often that happens? Guys were hanging their heads and keeping quiet. Good on Smid for speaking out against the rest of the guys. Everyone needs to be taking this seriously.

I've been ripping Petry all day. His stupid play was the reason for that goal plain and simple.

And Yes right now numbers wise Potter is second best on the team and I believe he had the most ice time last night. Now I'm sorry but what does that say about your defense when Potter is a front runner????

"At some point one of the Oilers leaders is going to have to stand up and rattle some cages. You can't always expect the coach to do it. It is time one of them stated they need to be more accountable to one another. We keep seeing the same mistakes happening game after game. "

On the newest Oil Change, Smid (I believe) has a melt down when the Oilers lose the game with less than a minute left. He rages a bit and basically calls out his team on not playing team defense first.

I wonder how often that happens? Guys were hanging their heads and keeping quiet. Good on Smid for speaking out against the rest of the guys. Everyone needs to be taking this seriously.

"At some point one of the Oilers leaders is going to have to stand up and rattle some cages. You can't always expect the coach to do it. It is time one of them stated they need to be more accountable to one another. We keep seeing the same mistakes happening game after game. "

On the newest Oil Change, Smid (I believe) has a melt down when the Oilers lose the game with less than a minute left. He rages a bit and basically calls out his team on not playing team defense first.

I wonder how often that happens? Guys were hanging their heads and keeping quiet. Good on Smid for speaking out against the rest of the guys. Everyone needs to be taking this seriously.

Oh thats who that was. I knew it was a European but couldn't make out who. they totally need more of that. And someone needs to start throwing sh*t because that really gets peoples attention.

Seems like most nights the team is playing for a tie. Gets really frustrating to watch as a fan. Some veterans stepping up and rattling some cages is great, but if the coach isn't playing to win its gonna be tough for that extra motivation to push the team over the top.

My quick hits:
Realignment = good
Last nights' oilers = aaaarrggghh
Whitney = bad play looking stupid
Petry = bad play making Smid look stupid
Nuge's shots = future goals, its coming
Hall back next game = best news for the team
Pairing of Nuge & Eberle = needs to be split up for a few games

...to digress on the last point, Nuge will make a sweet pass and the Eberle will get too fancy with it. Nuge is passer in a pass and shoot system. I'd like to break up this combo up as it is not a pass and dangle system. If I were the coach, I'd break apart a lot of his typical combos:
Smyth - Belanger - Hemsky
Hall - Nuge - Yakupov
Paajarvi - Gagner - Eberle
Teemu - VV - Petrell

I loved that part A-Mc, I think it may have been one of the best scenes out of all the seasons(that and when Yak asked that guy if he could go on the ice for the first time and looked up at the rafters and his jaw dropped.. kinda teared me up a bit) I love Smid's commitment to this team and it showed there.

Also, Im pretty sure when he walked into the dressing room he was swearing in Czech, which was awesome!

I never pegged Smid as that guy but I'm glad he did. You'd think these would be the guys who would wear the letters. You see it in Hall. I love Ebs but I just don't see that in him. Our 'quiet' leadership is reflected in the team overall.

Like to level the playing field and have a balanced shedule. Miss the ole 21 team league when you seen all teams twice a year.

The Oilers need something at center (Boyle). Someone who'll lean on people (fight when needed),win some faceoffs and contribute offensively. Horcoff will return to the line up and have little to no impact. Shawn's 0'fer to dominate in all 3 of these.

Some were miffed at the Oilers for not getting 2 pts last night. Feel it's unwarranted. If the Oilers went into the third period with a 1 goal lead against a team in the bottom 2/3rds of the league, then yes disappointment may be justified. Our bottom feeder Oilers giving up a 1 goal lead to the best team in the league, isn't at all rare. Chicago just played as well as they had to during this semi night off for them.

I agree with the Potter point. He does not look good out there, regardless of what the stats suggest. I like stats, but you can't let them control your opinion. Gotta look at everything in order to make a good overall judgment of something. When I see Potter I see someone who is in panic mode most shifts.

I say keep Fistric and Peckham together and let them rock away! That'll keep the opp in their heads when they cross the blue line.

I never pegged Smid as that guy but I'm glad he did. You'd think these would be the guys who would wear the letters. You see it in Hall. I love Ebs but I just don't see that in him. Our 'quiet' leadership is reflected in the team overall.

Eberle's teammates say he's very vocal and competitive. In the last Oil Change you finally see it a little in how he thinks out loud on the ice.

I'm not sure he's as quiet as his on-camera persona would lead us to believe.

If the Oilers were interested in a one dimensional enforcer, they probably would have grabbed Kassian off of waivers a couple of weeks ago.
Maybe teams are starting to realize that this type of player may not have a place in today's game.

If the Oilers were interested in a one dimensional enforcer, they probably would have grabbed Kassian off of waivers a couple of weeks ago.
Maybe teams are starting to realize that this type of player may not have a place in today's game.

A younger guy may be able to develop into a player that can play 5-7 mins a game while also being an enforcer but that would be a gamble.

Weren't stats suppose to the eliminate the need for opinions as you can't back them up?

Every time I read an article with stats and those stats are referred to as gospel I keep saying to myself, "Self! What about the human aspect? What if so and so got caught cheating on his wife or something?" Crazy, I know!

I'm rocking an early bottle of crazy right now!

Seems to me that if you don't have a stat to back up your argument you're wrong. Supporting evidence always helps. I get it. But watching a player play the game can tell you most of what you need to know when evaluating. Stats help quantify that. JMO.

'Money Ball' has had a major impact on how we, the sports fan, think about sports.

Functional toughness is what is required. Ryane Clowe has had a nightmarish season this year and is an impending UFA. San Jose has $10.5 in anticipated cap space next year with a total of 7 forwards, 5 defencemen and 1 goaltender signed. They need to sign 10 NHL calibre players for $10.5 million. Good Luck with all that. They cannot sign Clowe without buying out Marleau or Thornton, IMO.

So what is the cost, in terms of giving up in a trade, for a pending UFA forward with 0 goals? I would think it would be affordable. Having Clowe here a couple months should give a leg up on signing him here. If I am his agent I figure Edmonton is tailor-made for him, as he would certainly get opportunity to play in a skilled top 6 that sorely needs size / sandpaper. Plus the 2nd largest city in Newfoundland is only 4.5 hours north of Edmonton, so he should feel right at home.

A bunch of trades happening and the Oilers are sitting on their thumbs. Seriously Gagne for a 4th rounder. Tambo can't say there isn't trades out there when stuff like this hits. Cole for Ryder. There are trades hes just friggin lazy

Under the "system" we have now, McGratten is a fit, IMO. He knows his role, can play a few minutes, and will ensure our skilled guys have the room to play. Until the Oilers start winning and then drafting for positional players, we will always draft BPA, which is usually not a banger, but more of a second line starter.

Under the "system" we have now, McGratten is a fit, IMO. He knows his role, can play a few minutes, and will ensure our skilled guys have the room to play. Until the Oilers start winning and then drafting for positional players, we will always draft BPA, which is usually not a banger, but more of a second line starter.

My concern is McGrattan has not dropped the mitts in over a year. He lost his job in Nashville to a Richard Clune - whoever the hell that is. He has taken a lot of punishment over the years. Combine that with his troubling past issues off the ice, I am not sure how you can come to any other conclusion than "DONE".

If the card you are wanting to play is a physical presence on the 4th line, as mentioned above, Kassian was a much better choice, IMO.

I was wondering why they passed on Kassian, too. I know McGratten had issues in the past, but from my understanding they are resolved. Marriage does that to a young buck! I guess my concern is that why MGMT are not looking at those types of players and the thought process behind that. Our system does not allow us to instigate hits, our young players are getting hit due to positional play and youthfull mistakes. They kids are going to get hurt, ie Hemsky, and then what?

"Some stats guys"??? C'mon Gregor, just call out Staples on his recent Potter article directly if you're going to do it at all.

Potter's a low risk, low reward player. You don't see it, because when he's playing well there's not much to see. What I saw him do last night was angle off guys relatively well, and make a few solid passes to his D partner. Boring low event stuff. If he happens to make a few more good decisions than bad ones then we're ahead.

I was wondering why they passed on Kassian, too. I know McGratten had issues in the past, but from my understanding they are resolved. Marriage does that to a young buck! I guess my concern is that why MGMT are not looking at those types of players and the thought process behind that. Our system does not allow us to instigate hits, our young players are getting hit due to positional play and youthfull mistakes. They kids are going to get hurt, ie Hemsky, and then what?

The lack of an answer to Carcillo last night was noticeable. Eager was the one guy in the group who could have responded but he is, understandably, a little gun shy, given two significant concussions in the last 16 months. Even a Peckham in the lineup might have been able to address the issue, begging the question again what does Corey Potter do for you?

I see where you are going, I just think there are better alternatives. We already have to send one forward down to OKC once Harti's "shoulder injury" heals. Picking up McGrattan would mean two go down.